Pauschaireise - Package Tour

It’s so easy, isn’t it? Leaf through a glossy magazine in your local travel agent, gawp at people having air-brushed fun in southern Spain or on an overcrowded Greek island, put your money down and shuffle onto a plane a few months later, safe in the knowledge everything will be organised for you. Why not spend two weeks being whisked around at someone else’s pleasure, stopping when they stop, eating when they tell you to and being stuck with the same group of people for the entire trip. I’m not saying all package tours are a bad idea, it just seems like a massive gamble for an entire holiday that will probably be, for most people, their sole getaway of the year . Sure, if you want to see five or six major cities in Europe over ten days, a coach tour is likely to be the most convenient and cost-effective method, but you don’t have to be complete misanthrope for other people irritate you. An annoying person forcing you into conversation on a train or plane journey - as nauseating as that is - can be walked away from, guilt-free, when you reach your destination. But on a coach tour, they’re right there, and will continue to be there, in your face, for days and days to come. Perhaps there is an equal chance of there being a really great group of like-minded people, with whom fantastic conversation can be had and deep, meaningful friendships could be forged - a coach-tour bond that will never be broken. But I’m a cynic and a pessimist, so I’d never chance it. I’ll continue to book my holidays in small, manageable segments, so I can be my own boss and of course shake off any undesirables who start awkward conversations along the way!